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8.12 Windows 8.1 Update Cannot Be Installed

To download the Windows 8.1 update you first need
to open the Microsoft Store. Once in the Store you
will then click on the Windows 8.1 update link.

Under normal circumstances the Windows 8.1 update
should then start to download and install. However,
in certain circumstances, Windows 8.1 will start to
download and then you will receive a message which
politely states: Your Windows 8.1
installation couldn't be completed, Try again.

Occasionally you may also receive an error code
such as 0x80240031

Fig: 8.12.1 Installation couldn't
be installed message

Is your system fully up to date?

One of the major reasons why the Windows 8.1
update refuses to install is due to the fact that
your PC does not have all of the pre-requisite
files.

To install successfully your PC requires the
following updates to be downloaded from Windows
update:

KB2871389

KB2917499

KB2919355 Windows 8.1 Update

Without the first two updates Windows will be
unable to install the Windows 8.1 Update (KB219355).

If you are experiencing problems installing the
Windows 8.1 update, the first thing you should do is
open Windows Updates. Once the Windows Updates
window opens, click on the Installed Updates link on
the bottom left of the screen.

Fig: 8.12.2 Click on the Windows
Update link (highlighted)

Once the Windows Update window opens it will
begin to populate with all of the available
installed updates. Check to see that KB2871389,
KB2917499 are installed. If they are not then go
back to the Windows update screen and click on the
Check for Updates option.

Install any new updates that Windows Update find.
You may need to check for updates one more time to
enable Windows Updates to download and install the
Windows 8.1 Update (KB2919355)

Once all of the relevant updates have been
installed, visit the Store and click on the Windows
8.1 Update for free link. Windows 8.1 update should
now download and install.

If your PC is fully Up To date

If, after checking your PC, you find that your
computer is fully updated, then the next thing to
try is to delete all of the files in the Software
Distrbution folder. You do this as follows:

Open the command prompt as administrator. To
do this, Right click on the Start Button and,
from the drop down menu, click on Comman Prompt
(admin).

Fig: 8.12.3 Click on the
Command Prompt (Admin) option

Once the command prompt opens, type:
net stop wuauserv and then press the
Enter key.

If all has gone well you should see the
following message(s): The Windows update
service is stopping, followed by
The Windows update service was stopped
successfully.

If you receive an error message, make sure
that you are in fact using the Administrator
command prompt and not the non-administrator
prompt. You should see Administrator Command
Prompt at the top of your command prompt window.

Next type in: net stop bits
and press the Enter key.

Once again you should see a message which
says, The Background Intelligent
Transfer Service is stopping, followed
by, The Background Intelligent Transfer
Service was stopped.

Having stopped these services you now need
to open File Explorer by Clicking on its icon on
the taskbar.

Once File Explorer has opened you need to
navigate to the following folder:
C:\Windows\Software Distribution.

Fig: 8.12.5 Open up the
Software Distribution folder

Once the Software Distribution folder has
been opened, Select all files and folders inside
the Software Distribution folder and delete
them.

If you still have the Windows Store open on
your desktop, you may find that you get an error
message while trying to delete the Software
Distribution files. If this happens simply
restart your PC. Make sure that you do not open
the Windows Store then, open up the
Administrator Command prompt and type all of the
command again. After the commands have been
executed try to delete the Software Distribution
file and folders again.

Once the Software Distribution folders and
files have been deleted go back to the
Administrator Command prompt and type in the
following command: net start wuauserv
and press the Enter key.

You are now restarting the services you
previously disabled.

Once again you should see a message which
says, The Windows update service is
starting, followed by The
Windows update service was started successfully.

Next type: net starts bits
and press the Enter key.

Again you will see the following message:
The Background Intelligent Transfer
Service is starting, followed by,
The Background Intelligent Transfer
Service was started successfully.

Fig: 8.12.6 Services have now
been restarted

Once you have restarted the Windows update
service and the Background Intelligent Transfer
service you can then open up the Windows Store.

You should now see the following screen.

Fig: 8.12.7 Windows 8.1
update offering in the Windows Store

You should now try to download and install
the Windows 8.1 update again.